“You are not allowed to win too often because the press cast aspersions on what your doing, so we wanted to let our strike rate get down a bit,” Moody quipped.

Mid Summer Music ($3.50-$4.40-$4) defeated Hot Snitzel ($5-$6-$5.50) by a neck with Unpretentious ($3.70-$4.80-$4.60) flashing home when it was all over, a further half neck away.

Thankgodyou’rehere ($8-$6) appeared to have every chance and ran fourth with Big Buddie ($14-$17) producing an admirable on-pace effort for fifth.

“She’s a beautiful horse to ride, she just does what you want,” Arnold said, who was the most successful rider over the Melbourne Cup carnival with four wins.

“I was confident a fair way out and with her class she drove through and finished off well.”

Moody said he believed Mid Summer Music was “weighted to win for the first time all campaign” after carrying plenty of weight in handicaps due to her success in the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap earlier this year.

“I was still worried with the 57kg because she’s still only a pony but I’d like to put her guts and courage into a few others,” Moody said.

Mid Summer Music has raced 28 times for 11 wins and nine placings with prizemoney beyond the $1.35 million mark.